The Wolf & The Tiger
by Toshiko-Akatora
Summary: The tail of a clumsy, but potentially brilliant kunoichi, a devilishly handsome, mysterious copy ninja and the confusing feelings of lust and love that develop between friends. There will be teasing, play fights, and awkward moments with a sprinkle of humour on top for good measure. Enjoy! Rated T as it may get a tad suggestive in the future. KakashixOC
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** Hello! So this is my first attempt at writing fanfic, I hope it's not completely terrible… fingers crossed! I started it because I like sort of drawn out romance stories, personally I find them to be more believable and easier to get into as a reader. The name of my OC is Toshiko Akatora, which I believe means (or the many translators and name websites I looked on informed me) "Clever Child, Red Tiger", I chose the name because I love "Toshiko" and I wanted her to have a cat-like surname, hence "Tora" (which will make sense later on).

My life is pretty hectic at the moment so I can only write whenever I have free time, BUT I've written a good amount of the first draft so with any luck the next few chapters will be posted soon!

Any constructive criticism is very much welcome, just no flames. And please review!

Oh and any text in italics inside asterisks *_like this_* are meant to be thoughts, usually Toshiko's

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any characters, story, ideas that are associated with it. What I do own is my OC Toshiko Akatora and any other OC's that may turn up.

* * *

The last thing she uttered before losing to a sea of unconsciousness was "Why is it always me…"

=^.^=

"Ko… Iko…"

_*What _is_ that?*_ her head felt far too fuzzy for such a notion as concentration right now.

"Shiko… TOSHIKO!"

She heard it this time; a familiar voice was calling her name. Opening her eyes all she could make out in the blurry darkness was a faint flash of silver. With a quiet voice she answered "Kakashi? Why are you in my room?"

Kakashi Hatake uttered a sigh of relief behind his mask "I'd be rather worried if this was your room, Tosh, especially as it's starting to rain."

Her vision cleared long enough for Toshiko Akatora to finally take in her surroundings. The sun was long gone, and the silvery shimmer of the moon shone down through the leaves of the damp forest. This definitely wasn't her room. She then slipped back into unconsciousness.

Kakashi looked at his friend, this must have been some fight for her to be this beat up, and with that he lifted her gently in his arms and headed swiftly back to Konoha.

=^.^=

Toshiko awoke that morning covered in bandages, one arm in a sling, a foot in a cast and a splitting headache. _*Brilliant*_, she thought sourly, _*this is exactly how I wanted to spend my day off, in a hospital bed.*_ She glanced out of the large open window, there was something sticking up from the sill that caught her eye. Resting on her good leg Toshiko teetered over to investigate, reaching down she gently ran her hand through the soft thick fur… no, hair. She tentatively peered over the ledge in confusion; Kakashi was sat on an outcropping of roof tiles reading one of those pervy books he loves. He glanced up at her and remarked in a playful manner "I would prefer it if my hair remains attached to my head, naughty Tora."

Noticing her hand was still tangled up in Kakashi's hair her cheeks reddened, and with an embarrassed smile she let go "Aah sorry Kakashi, I didn't realise it was you."

Why had that made her cheeks burn red, was it as simple as pure embarrassment? And why did she wish her hand was still gently tousling his smooth perfectly poufy hair? He put the book away and climbed into the sparse hospital room. "I suppose I'll forgive you, just this once."

He helped her back into the comfort of the bed, and sat down beside her "so what happened? Do you remember anything?"

Toshiko thought back to the previous evening, the memory of what had happened flooding back to her. "I… I remember, I was on my way back from a mission and the rest of my team had gone up ahead. Out of nowhere over a hundred rogue ninja attacked me! I mean normally I could have taken them, easily, but I'd used too much chakra during the mission that they got the better of me. I fell and they left me for dead, then you turned up."

"You battled over a hundred ninja... and have little more than a few broken bones?"

"I was lucky…?" she replied.

_*He's really not going to buy this*_ she thought, _*but how can I tell him what really happened? He'll mock me for weeks!*_

"You weren't far from the village when I found you; no one came to your aid? I mean, a battle of half the size would cause enough noise to alert _someone_. I suppose I'd better go and inform the Hokage about this, you're hardly in a fit state to go. Right now you'd probably get there later than me…"

He carried on making observations and picking holes, it was obvious he was just trying to smoke her out, and of course it worked. "Alright, alright you've made your point! So that's not exactly how it happened, just don't laugh ok?"

Toshiko then proceeded to explain the _real_ cause of her injuries. "OK, so, on my way back I decided to stop for a few minutes, I'd used up a lot of chakra and energy so I needed to recharge. As I went to jump to another branch I may have lost balance upon landing, and my foot slipped. I winded myself on the next branch down, started panicking and really overcompensated with chakra as I tried to grab on to other branches on the way down, hence all the debris. I guess I managed to break the fall enough to not do any real damage, thankfully."

Kakashi had sat silently listening to the tail of pure clumsiness up until the end, but just couldn't help letting out a chuckle when she'd finished. He couldn't help it; the thought of a Jounin level ninja losing to a tree was just a tad ridiculous. She lightly punched his arm "Hey I said _don't_ laugh, meanie."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry" he said. "It's just, you go on dangerous missions all the time with no problem, but it's a tree that puts you in the hospital."

"So I'm a tad on the clumsy side. Now you know the whole story, happy?"

He sighed, giving his friend a warm look "very, although why do I have the sneaking suspicion you haven't told me everything…" He was cut off by a messenger bird flying past the window. "…but I guess that'll have to wait."

With a smile she replied "come visit me when you get back?"

He grazed her soft cheek with the back of his hand as he got up to leave "Soon as I get back, Tosh."

What was up with her? Kakashi had touched her cheek in the same way a hundred times before, in a completely _platonic_ way. Why was this time different? It had sent shivers down her spine, the good but rather confusing kind.

She decided to blame it on the painkillers.

Yeah, that must be it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** I really wanted to have this up by Sunday but an amazing opportunity came up and I had to dash off to London for a few days, long hours have resulted in not enough time for editing! Anyway, so here is chapter 2, again it's a slow story but I like it that way.

I'd like to say thank you so, so much to you wonderful people who reviewed, favourited or followed it means so much that you liked it!

Meeshamelee

XxcandichanxX

SolaShines

SamTheShortyMan

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Akatsupure

If you have any advice/constructive criticism I'd love to hear it as it'll help me improve. I'd especially like to know how well I've written the Canon Characters.

Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any characters, story, ideas that are associated with it. What I do own is my OC Toshiko Akatora and any other OC's that may turn up.

* * *

=^.^=

Over the next few days Toshiko was able to restore her chakra levels enough to at least heal her broken bones, she still ached all over but it was a vast improvement. She was by no means a genius in the medical department, but she had learnt enough to heal flesh wounds and the odd broken bone, which suited her needs perfectly. On the 4th day she awoke to the melodious sounds of chirping, and rays of sunlight streaming in through the window. Grumbling at her leftover aches and pains, she made her way slowly towards the en suite. Emerging an hour later refreshed and dressed, Toshiko went to gaze out of the window; where she felt a slight twinge of disappointment upon seeing the empty rooftop. She turned away. "Looking for someone…?"

A jolt of warm electricity shot through her chest as she spun around to see the tall figure idly leaning against the outside wall reading a book. "Kakashi, you're back!"

He cocked his head to one side, a twitch of his mask and a squint of his visible eye was all the evidence she needed to discern the hidden smile. "It would appear so."

"It's about time too, I was getting so unbelievably bored in here. You've got to help me leave 'Kashi, they won't sign me out, without supervision, for another couple of days!"

He let out a chuckle at the urgency in her voice, "you make it sound like it's a matter of life or death."

"Well you're not far off; my sanity will die an utterly dreary death if I stay here any longer! Does that mean nothing to you?"

"Your impatience could rival Naruto's. Hmm… well, I guess you do make things interesting around here; and it would be troublesome to have to find someone as equally amusing to spend my free time with… I guess I'll help, but on one condition."

_*Oh dear,*_ she thought, _*last time he said that I ended up having to race Guy around the village twice, whilst running backwards… I would've won had it not been for the river. What on earth will it be this time?*_ "What's the catch?"

"There's no need to look so worried Toshiko, I merely want to hear the rest of your little rendezvous with nature."

She paused to consider his proposal, "And that's it? You'll help me if I tell you?"

"I promise, Tora, that's all I'm asking for."

"Ugh, fine. You win. But I'll tell you all about it _after_ we get to mine."

=^.^=

They walked through the bustling streets of Konoha together, past delicious aromas emanating from restaurants and vibrant market stalls selling all manner of interesting things. Struggling to move her stiff bruised limbs, Toshiko had wrapped her arm around Kakashi's for support. She noted how warm his body was; it felt nice being so close to him. "How was the mission? Fight any awesomely evil ninjas? I _still_ can't believe anyone actually passed your survival test."

"'Awesomely evil'? That's a new one, I wonder what the Third would say if I wrote that in a report…"

Kakashi put on his most serious of tones and said "…We [Team 7] were ambushed on the southern outskirts of Crater City, by a gang of 'awesomely evil' ninja. Their incredibly absurd plan was to deviously decimate the city, using various rather impressive jutsu. Luckily we-Ouch…"

He looked down at the small kunoichi who was currently repeatedly jabbing at his side with a slender finger "hey, stop teasing me Hatake!"

They both laughed as he pulled her into a hug, pinning her arms down in the process. "Never" he replied.

He released her as they continued on down the street. They had just passed the Dango Shop when a voice called out to them "KAKASHI! TOSHIKO!"

Might Gai was heading towards them, "I was going to escort you home from the hospital, I am, after all, Konoha's noblest of gentleman but I see that Kakashi here has beaten me to it! I expect nothing less from my ultimate rival!"

"Hmm? Oh, hello Gai. Did you say something?"

"You're as cool as always Kakashi!"

Gai turned his attention to Toshiko, and produced a bouquet of flowers he'd been hiding behind his back. "Flowers, for the beautiful lady, I hope your recovery is swift!"

A smile spread across her face, "Oh they're lovely, thank you Gai. You really shouldn't have."

As she went to take the beautiful array of flowers she felt a nudge from behind, causing her to stumble gracelessly into Gai's arms. There was a muffled snigger from behind as she awkwardly pulled out of the accidental embrace. "Now you take care of yourself, little lady. And Kakashi, next time we meet it's your turn to pick the challenge!"

"Oh, Gai, you're still here?"

"Gah! You make me so mad Kakashi! Always so cool, and composed!"

They parted ways, and Toshiko and Kakashi carried on their journey. "Bloody hell Kakashi, trust you to make things awkward back there."

"I don't know what you mean; although, you two would make a cute couple. I was merely giving you a little… encouragement, you're welcome."

She could tell his mask was concealing a smirk. How she wished she knew what he looked like with a devilish grin plastered across his face, heck she wished she knew what his face looked like, period! "You are so, so bad, Hatake. You know it's not like that at all."

"Oh I know, but teasing you is one of my favourite past times, would you deny me my amusement?"

With a sigh she walked ahead, she wasn't really mad at him, to be perfectly honest she secretly liked the playful way he mocked her, it was like a game to them, but damned if she was going to let him get away with it. She heard him laugh nervously "Sorry Tora, You know I was just messing around."

She turned her head towards him, he was rubbing the back of his head with one hand in the familiar way he always did when he was trying to talk his way out of something, or apologising for being late. She melted at that, her face lit up in the most genuine and contagious smile, "I know."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** Hello wonderful readers, I'd like to apologise for how long it took me to upload this chapter! The last couple of weeks have been a tad hectic so my original plan for a chapter per week was a little unrealistic.

Anyway, thank you to everyone who has read the first two chapters, and a big thanks to reviews/favourites/follows you are all amazing and every notification email makes my day:

Akatsupure

Serenity10116

windwolf1988

Kongo Isamu

I really would love to hear people's thoughts on the characters, I've tried to keep them as close as possible to how they are in the series, but it would be really useful to find out other people's opinions, and I hope my OC is believable too!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any characters, story, ideas that are associated with it. What I do own is my OC Toshiko Akatora and any other OC's that may turn up. And the term "Tree Critter" is from the film Hoodwinked, it just fit quite nicely.

* * *

=^.^=

They sat at the coffee table in Toshiko's lounge, a piping hot bowl of instant ramen in front of each and the television playing in the background. "So? You owe me a story" Kakashi could barely hide the utter glee in his voice. "Or am I going to have to force it out of you? In fact the second option sounds far more interesting that I may not give you a choice…"

_*He's not going to let me off, is he*_ she thought to herself. "Fine, you win. Like I said I was standing on a branch, when something brushed passed my feet making me jump, and my foot slipped on the damp leaves. Thankfully I managed to grab onto this really small branch, and that's when it happened. The ferocious beast that brushed past me scampered down the tree and started scratching and nibbling at my fingers, causing me to let go, and well, you know the rest."

"Scampered? That's not usually a term used when describing 'ferocious beasts' as you put it; sure you're not over exaggerating just a little...?"

She could tell he was smirking behind his mask; his voice was dripping with sarcasm. "No I'm not at all, the little bastard had it in for me; he did it on purpose!"

"I'm sure he did, and what species of 'beast' was it..?"

She chose this moment to take a sip of steaming ramen broth, murmuring into the bowl, "A chipmunk... I think..."

She waited for the fits of laughter that would undoubtedly ensue... but there was none. No laughing, no mocking, no words, nothing. Kakashi just sat there in stunned silence, his one visible eye wide in surprise.

"A... chipmunk?"

"Yeah..." she replied, waiting for the inevitable.

A twitch of the mask and a slight tremble in his upper body, and then he was off, it was too ridiculous he just couldn't help but laugh. He was in such hysterics that he fell to the floor on his side, a few tears escaped from his right eye. Toshiko sighed as she sat next to him; she started smiling in spite of herself, his laughter infectious. The smile evolved into a giggle as a hand pulled her to the floor into an affectionate hug.

"Silly Tora, afraid of a little tree critter. As adorably clumsy you are, do try to be more careful in the future."

"Does this mean you won't hold this over me?" Hoping he would spare her the torture of the whole village finding out.

"Oh, no I'm going to enjoy this one for a long, long time" he released her from his embrace and wiped the tears from his eye.

Lying on the floor, too comfortable to get up, they started talking about Kakashi's team of Genin. They were an odd bunch who had just recently passed his survival test, much to Toshiko's surprise. "Obviously I already know Naruto a little from Ichiraku's, but what are the other two like? And how on earth did they pass _your_ test?"

He sat up with a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head with one hand, "they're not too bad, they were the first team who actually understood the message. I'll admit, at first, I really didn't like them but they are starting to grow on me."

"And? What are the other two like, who are they again?"

"There's Sakura Haruno, a typical girl her age, too preoccupied with boys. Physically she lacks in skill but she does have a sharp mind. Then there's Sasuke Uchiha..."

"Uchiha? As in...?"

Her voice trailed away as she thought back to the boy with hair the colour of midnight and eyes that, despite matching his hair, burned with passion and vengeance.

Her friend's voice snapped her away from her thoughts "Yeah. He's turning out to be a bit of a genius, surprise, surprise. Oh and of course he and Naruto are constantly at each other's throats."

She grinned evilly; between them they probably drove Kakashi mental, "Sounds… entertaining."

He raised an eyebrow at her, she _would_ find that amusing. "Nice to know my sanity means so much to you."

She playfully stuck her tongue out at the shinobi "Oh shush. It must be karma kicking you in the arse for all the times you're mean to me."

"I prefer the word 'torment', besides you make it too easy."

At this Toshiko decided to move the conversation on to something less likely to end in her being mocked. She was surprisingly tired and didn't have the energy for play fighting. "Have you been on any exciting missions with them yet?"

"Hmm, there was the one where we had to capture a cat... Naruto was covered in scratches by the end. Last week we had to paint the outside of a house... Naruto spilled paint on the roof, all over himself, not to mention the lady whose house it was..."

Kakashi waited for a reaction that he didn't receive. Toshiko had fallen asleep curled up on the floor next to him. She looked peaceful. He brushed her rebellious fringe across her face, his fingers resting gently on the side of her cheek for a brief moment before getting up and moving her to the comfort of the sofa. He laid a blanket over her to keep her warm, before settling down in front of the TV.

=^.^=

The sun had started its daily decent towards the horizon when Toshiko finally stirred. Kakashi glanced over at the petite kunoichi who had the blanket pulled up to her nose on the sofa, "how are you feeling now?"

"Oh you know, I'm alright."

Seeing through the upbeat tone in her voice he could sense that she was just being brave, but he was satisfied she'd be fine on her own. "How did I get on the sofa..?"

Kakashi's cheeks reddened a little beneath his ever present mask. "I moved you, thought you'd be more comfortable there. I'm going to head home now, but I'll help you upstairs to bed first. I'll come by tomorrow and see how you're doing, if you like."

_*You can take me to bed anytime.*_ A cheeky smile played on her lips for a split second at that rather naughty thought, until it was forced away by another, _*wait, what? Eww! No he's my best friend! I don't think of him like that... I don't... do I?*_

The tall, silver haired ninja looked down at his friend. She looked shocked and confused, with a hint of heated embarrassment to add to the mix. "Something I said?" He asked, one wide eye staring at her.

Blushing, she quickly tried racking her brain for an excuse. "Eeerr, I-I just remembered, I forgot to file my mission report. The third's not going to be happy with me, and Iruka will probably spout some nonsense about responsibility etc. etc. I don't particularly like getting in trouble, it's such a bother."

"I'm sure they'll let you off, considering the circumstances. You get too worked up over things like that."

"And you act far too flippant about them, how many times have you been early this year 'Kashi?"

_*Yes!*_ She thought. _*I got away with it _and_ managed to get one up on him at the same time.*_

He rubbed the back of his head. She had a point, and he had no comeback. An awkward laugh escaped his lips "ok, ok you got me there. How about I come by after training and we'll visit the Hokage? I need to get the details for my team's next mission anyway."

"Mmm, ok deal. If you're late, lunch is on you."

With a resigned groan and a nod he stood up, offered a hand to Toshiko, and helped her to her room.

It looks like he'd be paying, again.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:** As expected Christmas made it difficult to find the time to write, but here is Chapter 4, enjoy! I'm aware that so far I haven't really given a full description of Toshiko, it is intentional. I wanted it to feel like she's always been there rather than describing a brand new character. I'm also not a fan of putting down a long list of attributes etc so instead, where it's relevant, I'll add in little details here and there. But if you want to know anything specific just ask!

I had a request to go into detail about how Kakashi and Tosh met, from the beginning I didn't plan to talk about it in this story; instead I had an idea to write it as a stand-alone piece, sort of like an origin story, if this one did well, which it seems to be so far so it's likely to happen in the future.

I'll try to post updates regarding new chapters and other news on my profile so feel free to take a look.

Thanks to all the wonderful people who took the time to review/follow/favourite it makes me really happy to know you like it!

TsubakiHana

Imaginer Lady

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And Serenity10116 for your opinions and advice on chapter 3!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any characters, story, ideas that are associated with it. What I do own is my OC Toshiko Akatora and any other OC's that may turn up.

* * *

=^.^=

Toshiko awoke early the next day, she had decided that a bit of retail therapy would be the gentle exercise she needed to rid herself of the stiffness that lingered in her limbs, that along with the fact that her flat was currently void of all food. On the whole she had recovered nicely; with her full chakra supply fully restored she was able to heal the remaining aches and bruises she had left.

After a quick shower she threw on a sleeveless cream coloured cropped-top, thick high-waisted black leggings that stopped midway down her shin, her head band worn around her neck and ninja pouches tied around her waist. Pausing for a moment, the kunoichi ran a finger over the mark on the palm of her left hand that had been there since birth. Its shape was strange, irregular almost; like two overlapping diamonds, and only a shade darker than her skin tone. It was a trivial thing really, but Toshiko had always hated it and would constantly keep it covered. Heading downstairs she grabbed the black sandals she'd bought in Sunagakure and slipped a single, fingerless, black lace glove onto her hand. With a final contented glance in the mirror she turned towards the front door.

The suns warm rays gently soaked into her pale skin as she wandered through the bustling high street. She was just deciding on where to go first when a voice called out "Toshiko!"

She turned to see Gai proudly marching towards her, a huge smile etched on his face with Lee close behind. _*Always those green suits... do they have no shame?*_ She returned the smile. "Yo, what are you two up to, no mission today?"

"We just got back from one; our team is just so magnificently talented that we finished early! How are you feeling now?"

"I'm much better, thanks. I just needed some fresh air and a bit of exercise after being cooped up inside for so long."

Gai turned to his young student "did you hear that Lee? The lady needs some fresh air. We, as gentlemen, should aid Toshiko immediately!"

"What an excellent idea, Gai-Sensei!"

This most definitely wasn't going to end well... "Wait, Gai no, I really don't nee-eeEEEK!"

Before she could finish her sentence she found herself thrown over the tall, green Jounin's shoulder as he took no notice of her attempted protest. "Right, Lee, this will be an excellent opportunity for some training! We must hop all the way to the top of the Hokage monument and back, whilst reciting the laws and lessons of the shinobi – as we mustn't neglect to exercise our minds!"

Lee looked up at his sensei in the utmost adoration and raised a clenched fist in determination, "If we do not complete this training, Gai-Sensei, we must do a thousand one armed push ups!"

"That's the spirit, Lee!"

They hopped away in the direction of the famous cliff top at an alarming speed. The small kunoichi bouncing up and down on Gai's shoulder shouting demands and complaints as they went. "I swear I'm going to hurt you for this Gai! PUT ME DOOOOWN!"

=^.^=

For once Kakashi wasn't running late. He arrived at Toshiko's flat precisely when he said he would, but alas there was no one there to bear witness to this rare phenomenon. With a slight feeling of disappointment he jumped up onto the roof, he'd left his book on a cliff-hanger and this was the perfect opportunity to read on.

_"...Junko stared up at the intoxicatingly gorgeous specimen of a man who stood before her, his defined muscles flexing under his tight shirt. She felt her heart pounding as her breath quickened, he made her so angry! They argued constantly about anything and everything, but today it was different. Hiro stormed towards her and punched the wall inches away from her head. He loomed over her; she could feel the heat radiating from his body as her chest brushed against his as she drew in breath. Junko wasn't sure if he was about to kiss her or hit her, when suddenly-"_

A deep rumbling sound was coming from the street below, steadily increasing in volume. With a sigh Kakashi put his book away; he'd just have to wait until later to find out exactly what Hiro did. Lazily he lifted his gaze just in time to see the dust cloud that tore its way up the stairs to the patio. The dust settled, finally revealing the identities of the two who had caused such a calamity. Gai was standing heroically to the right, a sparkling smile across his face. To the left stood Lee, panting slightly but beaming just as enthusiastically as his Sensei.

"Great job Lee, I'm proud of you! You did so well I'm going to give you a treat." Gai outstretched his arm towards the younger, displaying a proud thumbs-up. "Now, enough training, go and enjoy the springtime of youth, you've earned it."

"Yes! Thank you Gai-Sensei!" He bounded away in the direction of the town below.

A muffled groan came from over Gai's shoulder, "ugh, for the love of ramen put me down..."

Kakashi let out a chuckle as he turned his attention to the girl haphazardly placed over his rival's shoulder. He didn't need to see her face to know who it was.

"Of course little lady, I have returned you to your destination in one piece."

Finally her feet touched solid ground with a slight wobble, "my 'destination'..? My destination was the bloody FOOD STORE, DAMMIT! Now I have to go out again!"

"Ah, well, that's problematic... I failed the training task! How can I make it up to you?"

Eyes aflame with a delicious mischievousness she replied "200 laps... around the village... on your hands."

At this moment in time the copy ninja was silently thankful he was on Toshiko's good side.

Konoha's green beast blinked, "200 laps?"

"Not up to the challenge, Gai? And here I thought you were worthy of being my rival…" Kakashi teased.

"A true ninja is up for any challenge! This will be a piece of cake; I'll be done in no time!"

With an agile flip, Gai was on his hands and starting on his next training task; that to anyone else would not be considered as such. "You know, he doesn't really look at that as a punishment..."

"Oh, I know, if I was serious about it I would have said no training for a few days. I mean seriously, can you imagine how he'd cope? I'm saving that one for the perfect moment. Now let's go before he comes back."

Kakashi let out a chuckle, Gai not being able to train? He'd probably have something akin to a mental breakdown, which would be highly amusing for his silver haired peer. A wicked smile hid behind his mask as he replied "promise me you'll save that for when I'm there? It would be a perfect opportunity to tease him."

"Mmm, I could, but I don't see what's in it for me."

"Name it."

"Anything? Anything at all? Isn't that a little risky, for you I mean..."

He turned his head so that his right eye was fixed on hers "Mm true, but some things are worth the risk."

Colour rushed to her cheeks, she could feel the palpitations of her heart strong and heavy inside her chest. _*get a hold of yourself idiot, he's not talking about me...* _She removed the thought from her head, replacing it with another _*hmm, I could have some fun with this though.*_

"So if I said you have to clean my house, you'd do it?"

"Sure."

"Or, that you'd have to be my servant for a week..."

"I said anything, didn't I?"

"Anything, anything..." She said with a tune in her voice. "You know I could completely take advantage of you and get you to do all manner of naughty things, and you'd still say yes?"

That definitely took him by surprise "Well, that depends."

Her eyebrow inadvertently raised itself, "On what?"

"On whom I'd have to do these 'naughty things' with, of course."

She could have sworn she detected a smirk in his smooth voice. With a wink of her eye she replied "you'll just have to wait and see what I decide then... right, so where would you like to go for lunch?"

"Toshiko... isn't there somewhere _else_ you need to go first?"

"No? I went to the bathroom before I left the house, so I'm good."

"That's... really not what I meant, silly Tora. We can get lunch after stopping by the Hokage's office."

"Oh, err, how about we go there after food? I mean, I wouldn't want to pass out from hunger, and the nurse said I have to keep my energy levels-"

A finger pressed lightly against her lips, preventing her from finishing her sentence. Her wide, surprised eyes met his stern but gentle one as he peered down at her "-Toshiko, Hokage's office now, food later. No excuses, do I make myself clear?"

Tosh knew he wouldn't let it drop until she was standing in front of the Third, completed mission report in hand. In a way, which she would never admit to, she kind of liked how Kakashi kept her in line when she started getting irrational or distracted.

Tosh made sure to over dramatize a sigh to show her displeasure before giving in. "Yeah, yeah, I'm going already..."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** Hello lovely readers, here is chapter 5 I hope you all enjoy it as much as chapter 4 which got a lot of love! This one is a tad more sombre than the rest of the story, but I feel it needs one or two low points to act as a break and add a little depth to the storyline. I originally wanted to have Toshiko meet Team 7 in this chapter, but by the end it just didn't feel right so I'm saving that for later.

Remember to check my profile for progress updates, and please don't hesitate to review/pm me your thoughts, questions or constructive criticisms, I really love reading them and they will hopefully help me become a better writer!

**Thanks to: **The wonderful IloveTeamSeth who gave me some brilliant grammatical advice on chapter 4, hopefully I've taken it all in for this one!

Books. , Superboy99, Lacrestcia, iridescent08, 0Abbey0, Yurina101, Akg36, ChildhoodFun, scranton-strangler, Avistone, Dinoluvr, Giotto21, LittleMissPirateQueen, CamillaLangdon, jocie161

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any characters, story, ideas that are associated with it. What I do own is my OC Toshiko Akatora and any other OC's that may turn up.

* * *

=^.^=

Large wooden doors towered over the two shinobi. She glanced apprehensively towards Kakashi "You know, maybe we should..."

Her voice trailed off as their eyes met, and the stern look she was receiving made her reconsider, "-Err knock first; barging in is just terribly rude."

Kakashi merely nodded in agreement. Her teeth gently bit down on her bottom lip as a hesitant fist made its way towards the door. With the patience he usually utilized as a sensei, Kakashi cocked his head to one side and said "You know it might help if you actually hit the door, Tora."

A scowl briefly flashed across the kunoichi's face as she complied, and with all the composure and maturity of a five year old stuck her tongue out at him. Laughing quietly, he rested one hand on her head and opened the door to the office.

The Third was sat at his desk immersed in paperwork as Toshiko entered the room. Looking up from the numerous mission requests, the Hokage focused his attention on his visitor, "Good afternoon Toshiko, I'm glad to see you have almost fully recovered, have you come to fill out you're mission report?"

"Thank you Lord Hokage, and yes that is why I'm here."

The elder nodded in response, opened a draw, and handed her a form which she preceded to fill out. When she had finished recounting the events of her last mission she passed it back, ringing her hands as she waited for the Hokage to read through it.

The sound of the clock mocked her from its perch high on the wall. She hated waiting with a passion, especially when it was regarding something important. This was by no means the first stupidly clumsy act that had put her in the hospital, it had gotten to the point where the Hokage had had words with her about it and sternly told her it wasn't acceptable for a Jounin. So to say she was a little nervous was an understatement and a half.

"Toshiko..."

_*Oh dear, this is not going to go down well.*_ She thought with a sigh. "Yes Sir?"

His elbows rested on the desk with his fingertips meeting in front of his down turned face. "We have spoken about this recently, I am sure you remember. I thought I had made myself perfectly clear that you need to train harder in order to move forward, and overcome this weakness."

"I know, you did, it's just... easier said than done... sorry Sir, I promise to try harder from now on."

_*This isn't as bad as I'd anticipated, maybe I'll get away with just a slap on the wrist...?*_ She thought, a set of fingers crossing behind her back.

Raising his head, his unwavering eyes bore into hers, "It is not your will of fire that concerns me, your love for the village has always been strong, and you are steadfast in your determination... when you put your mind to it. What worries me is that, at present, you are not delivering what is required of a Jounin level ninja."

Her heart dropped, and the subtle tingling of nerves crept upon her. This wasn't going exactly how she'd hoped.

"I'm worried that your recklessness will endanger not only missions or your own life, but those of your team mates, none of which is acceptable. I will grant you one last mission, if you complete it without incident, then I will allow you to stay on active duty."

As arguing at this point would have been futile, she merely nodded. Feelings of disappointment and shame mingled unpleasantly inside her, she really had no one else to blame for her laziness. She hadn't exactly taken it seriously at all; she had merely laughed it off and carried on as usual. The Hokage sat for a moment longer before changing the subject, "Is Kakashi outside?"

"He is. Would you like me to call him in?"

The other nodded in response, before adding, "He's supposed to see me later, but if he's here now I can trick him into being early."

She looked up before turning to leave; the old man was smiling at her. Damn, it sure made it harder to moan about him when he was just so nice. Smiling meekly in return she gave a short bow and left the room.

Kakashi had found a quiet wall to lean against and was seemingly immersed in his book when she called over to him, "Yo, Kakashi, it's your turn."

He raised his head slightly, meeting her gaze "But aren't I supposed to see him this afternoon...?"

She waved a hand absently, "Yeah, but he knows you'll only be late, so seeing as you're actually here right now he doesn't need to wait around." A cheeky grin spread across her features as she poked her tongue out.

Kakashi's eye scoured the ceiling as a groan left his lips, and in one fluid motion Icha Icha was closed and back in his pocket. "Hmm… we should probably get lunch first, you must be hungry by now…"

At that Toshiko arched a well-defined eyebrow at him, one hand rising to sit on her curvaceous hip, "Oh no you don't Hatake, get that hypocritical butt of yours in there before I kick it in!"

She received a look of mild surprise mixed with a dash of amusement, as the silver haired Jounin put his hands up with a laugh, "Ok, ok I'm going, I wasn't being serious."

"And somehow you still manage to be tardy, you're hopeless." She muttered as the door closed behind him, leaving her to ponder over the unfortunately wise words of the head of the village.

One more chance, that's all she had before a suspension from missions and months of intensive training. She would have to take it seriously from now on, no more messing around. Where would she even start, and what would be the most effective methods?

Only one option currently came to mind, and it wasn't exactly a reliable one considering the whereabouts of _that woman_ were currently unknown.

After a short time the door opened once more and Kakashi strolled out, a hand lazily perched in his pocket. "Now that's sorted shall we go?" He asked.

She shrugged her shoulders, turning towards the door "Sure, ramen ok with you?"

"Considering Naruto is one of my students it'd be a problem if it wasn't."

She chuckled, "Good point."

=^.^=

The walk to Ichiraku's seemed to take longer than usual; for once Toshiko was silent, lost in thought. Kakashi swiftly sensed she had something on her mind, and it didn't take a genius to work out the subject matter. "Feel like talking about it?"

The velvety voice enticed her back to reality, "Huh? Oh, well, there's not much to talk about, it's really not that interesting."

"Try me. Interesting is overrated."

He sure was persistent at times. She sighed, "Ah, where to start. You know how the Hokage wants me to work on my clumsiness and skills?"

A curt nod encouraged her to continue, and with that she recounted everything the Third had discussed with her. He quietly, and intently, listened to all she said and only when she had finished did he speak, "I see, do you have a plan? Just in case your next mission doesn't quite go as well as you would hope."

Toshiko considered the question for a minute, "It's not exactly a reliable option... but it's the best I've come up with so far. There's just one problem."

"Which is...?"

Her gaze fell to the floor, unsure of how her friend would react, "I would have to leave the village, for a few months."

Although Kakashi made no outward sign that this statement had affected him, she could sense him tense up at her words. "Oh."

"I'm going to find _that woman_ and ask her to train me." Her eyes continued to stare downwards.

It was rather rare for something to truly shock the ninja who had copied over a thousand jutsu; he had seen so much over the course of his life that being mildly surprised was the closest thing to a reaction that others would usually get. This, however, threw him. Not a lot was known about this woman, she was shrouded in a cloak of mystery, and Toshiko had rarely mentioned her. All that was known was that she had been a great ninja of the leaf several years ago.

Kakashi stopped in his tracks and reached for Toshiko's hand, turning her to face him. "Do you have an idea of her whereabouts?"

A half-smile played across her lips, "You remember the details of my most recent mission? I didn't tell you why I was alone. My team and I completed it without any problems, and on the way back I split up from them and took a detour via, oh what's it called? There's a small village a couple of miles away, it has that amazing tea shop we used to go to, remember?"

"The place you got banned from for six months after accidentally knocking over their china cabina-"

She hurriedly interrupted him before he could finish that glowing little anecdote, "Yes, yes! That's the one; you know they completely overreacted about the whole thing. Anyway, I have a contact in the village, he's always full of useful information and he happened to have the names of a few places she's been spotted in recently, it's a start at least."

"I see, and how do you feel about it, are you sure this is the only solution?"

"Maybe not the _only_ solution, but it's definitely the quickest and most beneficial. I can learn so much from her. As for how I _feel_...? I'm not so sure, a little hesitant, and of course I'll miss the village, but I've got to do it."

They fell silent as they started walking again. Kakashi mulled over the conversation they had just had, logically it made sense she did need to improve and this would be a great opportunity to do so. They also spent plenty of time apart whilst off on separate missions, so why did a wave of sadness wash over him at the thought? He pushed his feelings to one side for the moment; there was no need to put a downer on the rest of their day.

They finally reached the restaurant, completely oblivious of the fact that their hands were still entwined together.


End file.
